photos by Devan Council

Summer Camp @ Mercury Lounge - 2/6/12

Summer Camp toured through town this week and played a show with Field Mouse at Mercury Lounge on Monday. Here are some pictures. More of them below...

Continue reading "Summer Camp played Glasslands & Mercury Lounge with Field Mouse (pics)"

DOWNLOAD: Summer Camp - "All I Wonderful Christmas Is You" (MP3)

UK duo Summer Camp released their catchy debut LP, Welcome to Condale this past October via Moshi Moshi (you can buy it on eMusic), and followed the release with a European tour. Now, they're set to head out on a short North American tour in support of the album, which kicks off in NYC, where they made their American debut this past March. While they're here, they'll play Mercury Lounge on February 6 and Glasslands on February 7. Tickets for the Mercury show and the Glasslands show are on sale now. No openers have been announced for these shows yet, but stay tuned. All dates are listed below.

Summer Camp recently gave the Christmas gift of their track, "All I Wonderful Christmas Is You," which, if the name doesn't give it away, is a medley/fusion of Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmastime" and Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You." The combination works out really well too. Download it above and stream below.

In related news, Fanfarlo, which Jeremy Warmsley, who is one half of Summer Camp, is a sometimes member of, just announced a Webster Hall show happening on March 6. Tickets are still available.

All Summer Camp dates and stream below...

Continue reading "Summer Camp announced dates, released a Christmas tune"

Josh T Pearson @ BV-SXSW 2011 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Check out Rough Trade's list of the Top 100 Albums of 2011 (yay Josh T Pearson!), below...

Continue reading "Rough Trade's Top 100 albums of 2011 "

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Summer Camp - I Want You (MP3)

Summer Camp

Tonight (3/2) marks the American debut of UK duo Summer Camp who play an early show at Mercury Lounge and are signed to Moshi Moshi and have been featured on this site, and favored by blogs like Gorilla Vs. Bear and Altered Zones. The washed out '80s polaroid artwork of their Young EP matches the hazy, murky, nostalgic sound, not to mention their choice in sweaters.

Despite the supposed anonymity surrounding these two, it's actually the latest project from UK singer-songwriter Jeremy Warmsley who until recently was pretty much known for being part of the London scene that spawned Mumford & Sons, Laura Marling, Noah & the Whale, Fanfarlo (who he's sometimes a member) and, tangentially, Mystery Jets. You may have seen him play solo at Pianos or with Fanfarlo at Bell House in September 2009.

His last record, 2008's How We Became, mixed folk and electronic elements, so the Summer Camp sound is not completely out of left field for him. He's a talented songwriter, producer and arranger which brings a level of craft to the proceedings you don't see with a lot of this sort of stuff. And promisingly, the group's debut album is being produced by Pulp keyboardist Steve Mackie, the first fruits of which can be heard at the top of this post -- "I Want You" which drops most of the glo-fi haze for pretty solid dancefloor pop.

Opening for Summer Camp at Mercury Lounge are locals High Highs who make lovely dreampop not too far off from The Radio Dept. or Wild Nothing. (They've opened for the former and covered the latter.) No full-length out yet from this duo, but you can download a few tracks from their Bandcamp page and I recommend you do. Both Summer Camp and High Highs will be at SXSW and all shows I know about for each are with some songs and videos below...

Continue reading "Summer Camp are here, playing NYC w/ High Highs, playing LA & SXSW, are 50% Jeremy Warmsley"

DOWNLOAD: Summer Camp - Ghost Train (MP3)

UNDER THE RADAR MAG: Any plans for the rest of the year and 2011? Where will you be touring?

SUMMER CAMP: We just finished up the U.K. festival circuit, which was amazing. For the rest of the year, we're going to first take a little time off in the last of the summer sun and then we're going on tour in the UK with a great U.K. indie band, Frankie and the Heartstrings, which is really exciting. We'd love to tour the States, needless to say, and we'll hopefully make it over some time next year--Australia, Japan, Canada and Europe are all on our wish list too. Apart from that we're just going to carry on writing 'till our keyboards explode.

That interview was conducted in 2010 which means they got their wish. Tickets are on AmEx presale now (general sale starts Friday at noon) for a March 2nd Summer Camp show at Mercury Lounge in NYC, USA. More dates TBA, though those in the band's home UK can catch the band at shows on January 29th and February 2nd. Download "Ghost Train" above and listen to some more songs over HERE.

DOWNLOAD: Summer Camp - Christmas Wrapping (The Waitresses Cover) (MP3)

Summer Camp's version of "Christmas Wrapping" can also be found on the Moshi Moshi Christmas compilation, A Christmas Gift For You. Non holiday tracks by the UK indie pop duo can be heard in the videos below...

Continue reading "Summer Camp are doing 'Christmas Wrapping' (MP3 & videos)"

The first-ever Mountain Man Fest (not affiliated with the band Mountain Man) is tentatively set for July 24th in Saratoga Springs, NY. I say tentative because for the fest to happen it first has to be funded in full through a Kickstarter page with the goal of $65,000. What all that money is being used for isn't 100% clear, but the fest has until May 12th to make that goal. For a ticket, you need to "donate" at least $35. As of this writing it looks like they've sold 12 with "1488 of 1500 remaining".

Though that's a daunting goal (1,500 regularly priced tickets plus other donations), the "confirmed" lineup so far isn't that bad if you consider how much it would cost you to see each band separately (or as the fest puts it, "You (yes you!) get to see 12 hrs+ of amazing bands"): Islands (their only show currently), HEALTH (who are coming to NYC in June), Real Estate, Phantogram, Woods, Summer Camp, Memoryhouse, Pill Wonder, Family Portrait, Cults, Eternal Summers and Yip Yip ("You'll also be blessed with the sweet satisfaction of knowing that YOU helped make possible this history making musical event"). Underwater Peoples Records are involved in sponsoring the fest (four bands from the label are playing the show).

Another version of the cool poster art (which you can buy as part of giving them money) and the lineup again are below...

Continue reading "Mountain Man Fest may happen July 24th in Saratoga Springs "

Lightning Bolt @ Broadway Backyard on Saturday (more by Leia Jospe)

"isn't lightning bolt playing tonight in brooklyn somewhere? don pedros maybe?"
[Posted by Anonymous | September 15, 2008 4:28 PM]

Although that comment and the Don Pedro's calendar scream "secret show", it appears that "Lightning Bolt" are NOT playing there tonight....

Continue reading "Bolt of Lightning & Beards tonight? (no, probably not)"